GB2375290A

GB2375290A - A reservoir toothbrush handle

Info

Publication number: GB2375290A
Application number: GB0122297A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Dennis Augustus Gillespie
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-05-08
Filing date: 2001-09-14
Publication date: 2002-11-13
Also published as: GB0122297D0

Abstract

A handle 1 for a toothbrush includes a reservoir 23 for retaining an oral hygiene product, a longitudinal side surface of the handle includes a periphery 30 defining an elongate opening which provides external access to the reservoir. The handle may be formed in two parts attached to each other by two bulbous protrusions (13, Fig 1) on one part and received within two recesses 24 in the other. Preferably the reservoir 23 is provided with a cover 31 attached to the handle by lugs 33. A second reservoir (2, Fig 1) sealable with a cap (20, Fig 1) may be provided within the other part of the handle (1, Fig 1) and a suction pump (10, Fig 1) allows mouthrinse to pass from the second reservoir (2, Fig 1) to the toothbrush head (44, Fig 6). Preferably an end cap (38, Fig 5) is attached to the end portion 34 of the handle and by twisting a knob (42, Fig 5) toothpaste from the reservoir 23 is transported to the brush head (44, Fig 6). Advantageously, good access from the handle is gained to the refillable reservoir.

Description

COMBINATION TOOTHBRUSH This invention relates to toothbrushes and more particularly to toothbrushes which retain toothpaste inside them and have mechanisms which dispense the toothpaste to a brush head.

Toothbrushes which retain toothpaste inside them are well known in the art. They obviate the need to carry a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste, which may be advantageous when travelling, for example Furthermore, an action of dispensing toothpaste to a brush can be achieved more quickly U. K Patent Application 2302499A describes a toothbrush with a toothpaste dispenser The handle of the toothbrush comprises a reservoir for retaining toothpaste. A toothbrush head, which is attached to the handle, has a hollow section for passing toothpaste from the reservoir to the toothbrush head. Toothpaste is urged from the reservoir to the head by moving the toothbrush head axially relative to the handle This toothbrush is intended for use only until the reservoir is empty, in that the reservoir is not designed to be refilled with toothpaste once empty.

U S Patent 6213662 describes a similar toothbrush with a toothpaste dispenser Toothpaste retained in a reservoir In the handle of the toothbrush is dispensed to a toothbrush head. Toothpaste in the reservoir is urged to the toothbrush head when a knob at the base of the handle is twisted The knob is fixedly attached to a threaded shaft which runs the length of the reservoir When turned, the threaded shaft urges a piston head through the reservoir, thereby urging the toothpaste towards the toothbrush head. Within the reservoir the toothpaste is retained in a cartridge, which may be replaced with another cartridge when spent This toothbrush can only be loaded with cartridges of a particular type suitable therefor Refilling the toothbrush with a conventional tube of toothpaste IS therefore not possible.

A refillable toothbrush with good access to a reservoir in the handle for retaining toothpaste is therefore desirable According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a handle for a toothbrush including a reservoir for retaining an oral hygiene product, a longitudinal side surface of the handle including a periphery defining an elongate opening thereby providing external access to the reservoir The elongate opening on the side surface of the handle provides easy access to the reservoir The reservoir may therefore be filled with toothpaste from toothpaste tubes, which are widely available Filling the reservoir from an end surface of the handle would be difficult, as toothpaste is a viscous substance which does not tend to flow under its own weight and would therefore tend to collect around the rim of a restricted

opening, inhibiting the filling step Z !) I. D ID The cross-sectional shape of the handle may be oval for ergonomic and aesthetic purposes The cross-section may therefore have a major axis and a minor axis, and it

w will be preferable that the elongate opening would be located on a side portion of the I Zll > n handle associated with a plane perpendicular to the major axis. The plane need not be perpendicular in the strict geometrical sense Alternatively, the elongate opening may be located on a side portion of the handle associated with a plane perpendicular to the

minor axis I minor axis The periphery defining the elongate opening may have means for engaging a cover According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a handle for a

toothbrush including a reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product and a ID pump for urging a liquid oral hygiene product retained in the reservoir away from the reservoir

A handle according to the second aspect of the invention is able to retain certain products other than toothpaste, such as mouthrinse which may be preferred to toothpaste by a user of the handle. The handle may have a conduit defining a path between the reservoir and an end of the handle, the pump being disposed in the path and may act by means of suction.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a handle for a

toothbrush including a first reservoir for a retaining a first oral hygiene product and a zn second reservoir for retaining a second oral hygiene product.

A handle in accordance with the third aspect of the invention is able to dispense more than one oral hygiene product onto the same toothbrush head in separately measured amounts The handle may comprise first and second conduits in which the first conduit provides a first path between the reservoir and an end of the handle and a second conduit provides a second path between the second reservoir and an end of the handle The handle may further comprise a pump associated for urging an oral hygiene product

retained in the first reservoir through the first conduit. The pump may be a suction ZD pump of a type used in children's water pistols. There may be a pump associated for urging an oral hygiene product retained in the second reservoir through the second conduit Preferably, the pump associated with the first conduit is suitable for urging an oral hygiene product with a first viscosity and the pump associated with the second conduit is suitable for urging an oral hygiene product with a second viscosity. The first viscosity may be of a substantially lower magnitude than the second viscosity. In fact, the first oral hygiene product may be mouthrinse or any similar liquid oral hygiene product

A toothbrush handle may be constructed in accordance with any combination of the first, second and third aspects of the invention. In a particularly advantageous embodiment, a handle including an elongate opening, as described above, may include another reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product and a pump for urging a liquid oral hygiene product retained in the other reservoir away from the other reservoir. In all aspects of the invention, the conduits may be flexible or inflexible tubes chosen as suitable for their intended function The reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product may advantageously be detachable from the reservoir with the elongate opening The reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product may then have an opening exposed, which is suitable for refilling that reservoir The opening need not be particularly large because a liquid oral hygiene product will tend to flow under its own weight and fall to the lowest point in the reservoir by the action of gravity alone A toothbrush head may have a conduit defining a path between bristles and the base of the head When attached to a handle in accordance with any aspect (s) of the invention, the conduit is arranged in communication with the, or any of the, reservoir (s) located within the handle If a handle comprises two reservoirs, a suitable toothbrush head would Include a second separate conduit in communication with the other reservoir located within the handle In order that the invention may be more readily understood, an embodiment will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, and-

Figure 1 shows a cross-section of a first part of a handle in accordance with the 0 embodiment, Figure 2 shows a cross-section of a second part of the handle in accordance with the 0 embodiment,

Figure 3 shows an end view of the second part of the handle and a cover ; Figure 4 shows a further cross-section of the second part of the handle and the cover; Figure 5 shows an end cap with a threaded rod and piston assembly to be attached to the second part of the handle. and Figure 6 shows a cross-section of a toothbrush head attachable to the first part of the handle Referring firstly to Figure 1, a first part of a handle, shown generally as 1, comprises a reservoir 2 inside it An inflexible tube 3, coaxially and fixedly located within the first part of the handle I by a crosspiece 4, provides communication between one end and another end of the first part of the handle I The inflexible tube 3 has respective inflexible tube ends 5, 6 A flexible tube 7 is also mounted within the first part of the handle I, having one flexible tube end 8, positioned at the end of the handle 1 which receives the toothbrush head (not shown), and a distal flexible tube end 9. A suction pump 10, actuated by a button 11, is disposed in the path of the flexible tube 7. The distal flexible tube end 9 is positioned at a side of the first part of the handle 1 opposite to the suction pump 10 The suction pump 10 is of a very simple construction, and is of the type commonly found in children's water pistols. A cavity 12, having a substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape, is provided on the end of the first part of the handle) for receiving a toothbrush head The outer surface of the first part of the handle 1, surrounding the cavity 12, is threaded On the end of the first part of the handle I, opposite to the end which receives a toothbrush head, there are two bulbous protrusions 13 and two sliders 14 (one of each shown). The bulbous protrusions 13 are fixedly attached to the first part of the handle I, whereas the sliders 14 are plastic rectangular members which may be urged along respective recesses of the first part of the handle I so as to protrude slightly therefrom There is substantial friction between the sliders 14 and their respective recesses

A cap 15 has an intermediate tube 16 mounted coaxially in it, and a hollow cylinder 17 is attached to an intermediate tube end 18 of the intermediate tube 16. The internal surface of the cap 15 is threaded, and is engageable with a threaded surface of the first part of the handle I The external surface of the cap has a circular cross-section and is smooth The internal surface of the hollow cylinder 17 is engageable with a threaded external surface of the inflexible tube end 6 The external diameter of the intermediate tube end 18 is slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the inflexible tube end 6, so that, when they engage, a liquid-tight seal is achieved, together with the assistance of the hollow cylinder 17 The cap 5 has a rubber seal 20 which achieves a liquid-tight seal when pressed against the opening 19 The exterior of the cap 15 has a smooth surface 21, and the other end of the intermediate tube 16 is mounted within the rubber seal 20, having an opening 22 Referring now to Figure 2. a second part of the handle I is shown, which has a reservoir 23 mside it, the reservoir 23 having an oval-shaped internal cross-section.

The second part of the handle I has two bulbous recesses 24 within the body and two rectangular recesses 25 on the longitudinal side surface thereof (one of each is shown) The bulbous recesses 24 are shaped in one part as shown by the solid line, and are U-shaped in another part as shown by the dotted lines There is further provided a cavity 26, which has a smooth surface 27 with a circular cross-section. A spout 28, with an O-ring 29 around it provides an opening to the reservoir 23. The second part of the handle I comprises two upstanding flanges 30 which define an opening in the second part of the handle t, providing access to the reservoir 23. The flanges 30 are shaped to receive a cover 31, the cover having recesses 32 on its periphery which are engageable with lugs 33 which protrude from exterior surfaces of the flanges 30 An end portion 34 of the second part of the handle I is of a smaller cross-section than the rest of the second part of the handle I Upstanding from the periphery of the second part of the handle L next to the end portion 34, are two receiving lugs 35 (one is shown)

Referring now to Figure 3, at the surface of the end of the second part of the handle 1, the bulbous recesses 24 each have a U-shaped part which is slightly wider than the cross-sectional width of the head of the bulbous protrusions 13. The bulbous recesses 24 have another part extending arcuately which is narrower than the head, but slightly wider than the neck, of the bulbous protrusions 13 Below the surface of the end of the second part of the handle in the bulbous recesses 24, the parts of the recesses are as wide as the first-mentioned part above, as shown by the dotted lines.

Referring now to Figure 4, there is adhered a rubber lining 36 over part of the internal surface of the cover 31 The internal surfaces of the flanges30 have stopper ridges 37 protruding therefrom running the length of the second part of the handle 1, which seat the cover 31 and form a seal with the rubber linll1g 36 when the cover 31 is engaged with the second part of the handle I Referring now to Figure 5, an end cap 38 has two clips 39 which are resiliently deformable towards each other The end cap 38 has a circumferential inner wall which is positioned close to the internal surface of the outermost wall. A rubber 0- nng 40 is placed in the annular recess formed between the inner wall and the exterior of the end cap 38 A threaded rod 4\ IS mounted In the end cap 38, the rod 41 being fixedly attached to a knob 42. The knob 42 protrudes from the end cap 38. A piston head 43, made of plastic covered with rubber, is positioned on the threaded rod 41 and engages with its thread The piston head 43 has an oval-shaped cross-section which corresponds to the oval-shaped internal cross-section of the reservoir 23 so as to ensure a snug fit when inserted into the reservoir 23.

Referring lastly to Figure 6, a toothbrush head 44 has a base end 45, which has a baseend opening 46 of a mouthrinse conduit 47 inside the toothbrush head 44, and a baseend opening 48 of a toothpaste conduit 49 inside the toothbrush head 44. The other end of the mouthrinse conduit 47 forms a brush-end opening 50 and the other end of the toothpaste conduit 49 forms a brush-end opening 51 Both the brush-end openings 50,51 are located at, and dispense respective oral hygiene products to, bristles of the toothbrush head (not shown) The base 45 has a substantially rectangular crosssection. A sleeve 52, having an internal diameter which is slightly larger than the

outer periphery of the first part of the handle I around the cavity 12, includes two inward facing flanges 53 The flanges 53 partially define a circular cross-section which is wide enough to allow the toothbrush head, with the exception of its base 45, to be inserted therethrough The interior surface of the sleeve 52 is threaded.

In operation, the reservoir 2 is filled with mouthrinse via the opening 19 The cap 15 is then screwed onto the first part of the handle !, with the intermediate tube end 18 engaging with the inflexible tube end 6 and the rubber seal 20 engaging with the rim of the opening 19 The second part of the handle 1 is engaged with the first part of the handle I by inserting the bulbous protrusions 13 into the wider part of the bulbous recesses 24.

The first part of the handle I is twisted relative to the second part of the handle 1 moving the bulbous protrusions 13 inside the bulbous recesses 24, such that the heads of the bulbous protrusions 13 are grasped by the narrower parts of the bulbous recesses 24. The spout 28 engages with the opening 22, and the 0-ring 29 provides a seal The smooth surface 27 and the smooth surface of the end of the first part of the handle 1 do not unduly inhibit rotation, although there is sufficient friction between the bulbous protrusions 13 and the bulbous recesses 24 to prevent accidental twisting of the two parts of the handle I The sliders 14 are then urged towards the second part of the handle 1, so that they engage with the rectangular recesses 25 The friction between the sliders 14 and their surroundings cause them to remain in place.

The reservoir 23 is then filled with toothpaste and, owing to its higher viscosity, the toothpaste does not tend to spill out of the spout 28 or the end portion 34. The cover 31 is then slid onto the second part of the handle 1 in a sealing engagement with the lugs 33, and the end cap 38 is placed onto the end portion 34 The clips 39 engage with the lugs 35 without being depressed, retaining the end cap 38 in position. The 0ring 40 provides a seal between the end portion 34 and the end cap 38. It is desirable that the piston head 43 is arranged to be at the end of the threaded rod 41 which is closest to the end cap 38 before the end cap 38 is placed onto the end portion 34. As both the piston head 43 and the reservoir 23 have the same cross-sectional shape, the piston head 43 is rotationally fixed relative to the reservoir 23.

The toothbrush head 44 is attached to the first part of the handle I by inserting the base 45 into the cavity 12 The base-end openings 46,48 engage with the flexible tube end 8 and the inflexible tube end 5 respectively The brush-end opening 50 is therefore in communication with the reservoir 2 and the brush-end opening 51 is therefore in communication with the reservoir 23 The sleeve 52 is then placed over the toothbrush head 44 and is screwed onto the end of the first part of the handle 1.

The internal thread of the sleeve 52 is arranged so that the flanges 53 cover the base 45, thus the toothbrush head 44 cannot be removed from the first part of the handle 1.

Mouthrinse retained in the reservoir 2 is dispensed to the brush-end opening 50, and thereby to the bristles of the toothbrush head 44, by actuation of the button 11. The suction pump 10 works by pneumatic means, so it may be necessary to press the button I I several times to dispense mouthrinse to the bristles when using the handle 1 for the first time after a refilling operation The distal flexible tube end 9 is positioned so as to be at the lowest point of the reservoir 2 when the handle 1 is orientated so that the toothbrush head 44 is in a user's mouth Toothpaste in the reservoir 23 is dispensed through the brush-end opening 51 by twisting the knob 42 relative to the handle 1 The piston head 43 is thereby moved towards the spout 28 along the threaded rod 41, thereby urging toothpaste along the inflexible tube 3. When it is desired to remove the end cap 38. the clips 39 are each depressed, thereby disengaging them from the lugs 35

Variants are possible within the above-described embodiment. The sleeve 52 need not have an internal thread and may be positioned on the end of the first part of the handle I so that it is able to rotate, but is fixed axially, relative to the first part of the handle 1. A certain amount of friction would have to be present between the sleeve 52 and the end of the first part of the handle !, so that the sleeve is not able to rotate too freely, thus possibly, and undesirably, releasing the toothbrush head 44 from the first part of the handle I The recesses : 1 2 on the cover 3 I and the lugs 33 on the flanges 30 may be interchanged, so that the lugs 33 are on the cover 31 and the recesses 32 are on the flanges 30. The reservoir 23 and the piston head 43 must have the same cross-sectional shape, but it need not be oval The combination toothbrush need not be used with two oral hygiene products, it may be the case that mouthrinse only, or toothpaste only, is desired to be dispensed to the toothbrush head 44. The mouthrinse conduit 47 and the toothpaste conduit 49 may be formed within any part of the neck of the toothbrush head 44, since the neck need not have a circular crosssection More than two lugs 35 and clips 39 may be used The lugs 35 on the second part of the handle I and the clips 39 on the endcap 38 may be interchanged, so that the lugs 35 may be disposed on the end cap 38 and the clips 39 may be disposed on the second part of the handle ! S1I11llarly, more than two bulbous protrusions 13 may be used with more than two bulbous recesses 24 The bulbous recesses 24 on the second part of the handle I and the bulbous protrusions on the first part of the handle I may be interchanged, so that the bulbous recesses 24 may be disposed on the first part of

the handle i and the bulbous protrusions 13 may be disposed on the second part of the handle 1.

Claims

Claims:

A handle for a toothbrush including a reservoir for retaining an oral hygiene I I I iene product, a longitudinal side surface of the handle including a periphery defining an ZD elongate opening thereby providing external access to the reservoir.
2 A handle as claimed in Claim I in which a cross-section perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the handle has a major axis and a minor axis, the elongate opening being located in a side portion of the handle associated with a plane perpendicular to the major axis
3 A handle as claimed in Claim I in which a cross-section perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the handle has a major axis and a minor axis, the elongate opening being located in a side portion of the handle associated with a plane perpendicular to the minor axis
4 A handle as claimed in anyone preceding claim in which the periphery has means for engaging a cover
5 A handle for a toothbrush including a reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product and a pump for urging a liquid oral hygiene product retained in the reservoir away from the reservoir
6 A handle as claimed In Claim 5 comprising a conduit defining a path between the reservoir and an end of the handle, the pump being disposed in the path and acting by means of suction
7 A handle for a toothbrush including a first reservoir for retaining a first oral hygiene product and a second reservoir for retaining a second oral hygiene product.

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8 A handle as claimed in Claim 7 comprising first and second conduits, in which the first conduit provides a first path between the first reservoir and an end of the handle and the second conduit provides a second path between the second reservoir and the end of the handle.
9 A handle as claimed in Claim 8 comprising an associated pump for urging an oral hygiene product retained in the first reservoir through the first conduit.
10 A handle as claimed in Claim 9 in which the pump associated with the first conduit is a suction pump
I I A handle as claimed in any one of Claims 9 or 10 comprising an associated pump for urging an oral hygiene product retained m the second reservoir through the second conduit
12 A handle as claimed in Claim 11 in which the pump associated with the first conduit is for urging an oral hygiene product with a first viscosity and the pump associated with the second conduit is for urging an oral hygiene product with a second viscosity, in which the first viscosity is of a substantially lower magnitude than the second viscosity
13 A handle as ciaimed in any one of Claims 7 to 12 in which the first oral I hygiene product is a mouthrinse preparation
14. A handle as claimed in Claim I including another reservoir for retaining a liquid oral hygiene product and a pump for urging a liquid oral hygiene product retained in the other reservoir away from the other reservoir
15 A handle as claimed in Claim 7 or 14 in which a, or the first, reservoir located within the handle is detachable from another, or the second, reservoir thereby providing access to an opening of the other. or the second, reservoir

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16 A combination of a toothbrush head and a handle as claimed in any one preceding claim, the toothbrush head comprising a toothbrush conduit defining a path between bristles and a base of the toothbrush head, the conduit arranged in communication with the reservoir, or at least one of the reservoirs, located within the handle
17 A combination as claimed in Claim 16 in which the toothbrush head comprises another toothbrush conduit defining a path between bristles and a base of the toothbrush head in communication with another reservoir located within the handle.
18 A handle for a toothbrush substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings